Man accused in theft of guns arrested in Wisconsin; had sent manifesto

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Photo taken on April 4, 2017 at 1:00 p.m. at the Mobil Gas Station, 1215 Milton Avenue, Janesville, WI.

Man accused in theft of guns arrested in Wisconsin; had sent manifesto

Photo taken on April 4, 2017 at 1:00 p.m. at the Mobil Gas Station, 1215 Milton Avenue, Janesville, WI.

MILWAUKEE (AP) — A fugitive accused of stealing numerous weapons from a Wisconsin gun store and sending an anti-government manifesto to the White House was arrested Friday after nine days on the run, sheriff’s officials said.

Joseph Allen Jakubowski was found in Readstown, about 125 miles (200 kilometers) northwest of Janesville, Jakubowski’s hometown, where the manhunt for him began April 4.

The Rock County Sheriff’s Office said the break in the investigation came when a property owner in Readstown called the Vernon County Sheriff’s Office Thursday evening to report a suspicious man camping on his land. The property owner told authorities the man matched Jakubowski’s description and that he was refusing to leave.

Wanted posting for Joseph A. Jabukowski

The office said in a statement that tactical officers surrounded Jakubowski and arrested him around 6 a.m. Friday without incident.

More than 150 law enforcement officials had been searching for Jakubowski, 32, since April 4 when authorities say he broke into a gun store in Janesville, about 70 miles (110 kilometers) southwest of Milwaukee.

On Thursday, Gov. Scott Walker cancelled an Easter egg hunt, which had been scheduled for Saturday, citing security concerns. It was not immediately clear if the annual tradition would go ahead as planned now that Jakubowski is in custody.

The Rock County Sheriff’s Office says Jakubowski wrote a 161-page manifesto in which he detailed a long list of grievances against the government and spoke of plans to launch attacks with the 18 firearms he allegedly stole.

Janesville Police Chief David Moore said Jakubowski cited concerns about President Donald Trump in his manifesto but that he didn’t make any specific threats.

The sheriff’s office said Jakubowski filmed a video of himself dropping his manifesto, addressed to Trump, into a mailbox and speaking of a “revolution” before the manhunt began. He warned in the video that whoever received the manifesto “might want to read it.”

On Thursday, WTMJ-TV posted 35 pages of handwritten documents to its website that it said were an unidentified law enforcement official verified as Jakubowski’s writings. Rock County Sheriff’s Office Commander Troy Knudson said the writings appeared genuine.

“We the people should be out for these sick minded people belonging to the system! We need to spill their blood!” the document reads, going on to say priests and churches control U.S. presidents and banks.

Jakubowski has had several run-ins with law enforcement, most for traffic violations. But police say he previously resisted arrest and once tried to disarm an officer.